Bears dangling Olsen at combine

Bears tight end Greg Olsen being on the trade block was apparently the most talked-about rumor at the combine this week, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Greg Bedard. The Bears recently hired Mike Martz to be their new offensive coordinator, and Martz has never asked his tight ends to run many passing routes, nullifying Olsen’s talent in Chicago. Plenty of team’s will be interested in Olsen, so it will come down to just how much the Bears want for him in return.

Additionally, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune has word from multiple league sources that the Bears might sign Brandon Manumaleuna, a stout blocking-oriented TE. He's the type of player at TE that new OC Mike Martz loves, and his signing could indicate that the Bears are ready
to move Greg Olsen. As we're well aware by now, the Bears don't have any draft picks in the first or second rounds this April, and they
might be able to secure a pick or two by moving a player who is not a fit for the Martzian scheme.

In an interview with ChicagoBears.com, GM Jerry Angelo addressed Olsen indirectly. "A name was brought up to me [recently] about a potential player that might not be a real good fit -- his name's been bantered around ... But we're in the business to keep our good players. We're in the business to make sure that our schemes facilitate our better players. That to me is what good coaching is about. So for me to see
us trading somebody away at this point, I really don't see that happening." Angelo did say that if another team came in with a solid offer, the Bears would consider it.

The Tribune's Dan Pompei provided another good reason why they shouldn't trade Olsen: Martz (as well as Lovie Smith and Angelo) might not be around in 2011, and the new regime might be more TE-friendly.

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(nflgridirongab.com)